


Monster

by duckydoesthings



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Crossover, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-25
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2018-11-04 22:28:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11000307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/duckydoesthings/pseuds/duckydoesthings
Summary: Riku was excited to go to Midgar University. His dreams of being a paramedic finally coming true, that was until his father turns the tables on him and sends him away to a private college. Riku soon finds out that the college is more than just a school, but a way of life. A killer life.{KH/FFVII AU Crossover}





	1. A Day May Come Where We Lose

The sound of the Skype call tone interrupted the calm silence of his bedroom. Riku tapped the answer button and set the tablet up to face him.  
  
"Hey Kai. How was the drive over here?"  
  
"It was good! I really like Midgar so far!" Riku smiled at her enthusiasm for his home city. It was endearing and really cute. "Its so different then Destiny Islands."  
  
"Are you sure? I've been to the islands during the summer."  
  
Kairi laughed, leaning back into the hotel chair. The hotel she was staying in was cheap and run down. He offered to help pay for the hotel, but she refused, saying something about how the trip was about him.  
  
"You have a point, but there is a considerable difference between the islands and Midgar, Riku."  
  
"You're trying to sell a sweater that I've owned my entire life." Riku pointed out, smiling again. He definitely was happy that she was here in the city and he was looking forward to seeing her again. It had been a few years since they had visited their summer home, it was really nice to have that type of relaxed feeling again.  
  
"Oh! Sassy Sue over here. Come on Riku, don't look so dazed. I'm here in Midgar for you."  
  
"I have a feeling that you're not telling me the full story."  
  
"What do you mean?" Clearly she was playing innocent. He knew her well enough to see that.  
  
"Why would you come all the way from Destiny Islands to Midgar just to see me?" Kairi shrugged, and leaned forward to grab an envelope. She sat back and started to open it. The white envelope was ripped open and it looked used for a notebook as well. This only made him worry for a second.  
  
"Miss Evelon," She started to read the letter, trying to hide her mouth with the paper. It was easy to see she was beginning to smile. "We have reviewed your application and essay, and after careful considerations, we at Midgar University have accepted your application."  
  
Riku listened carefully and was absolute shocked. She had gotten accepted into MU too? He couldn't stop the ear to ear grin that appeared on his face.  
  
"Kairi! That's so cool! Congratulations!" The redhead put the letter and envelope back onto the desk, matching his grin with her own.  
  
"I didn't want to tell you until I was here, so we could tour the campus together!" To him, the way she said it sounded like a date. His cheeks turned a light pink at the thought.  
  
"Of course! I just can't believe you kept this from me!" He exclaimed, keeping the smile on his face. From the second floor, he heard the door open and close. Clearly it was his father, coming home from work.  
  
"I'm not sorry. Seeing your face made it all worthwhile." She chuckled, pushing her bangs out of her face. She noticed that he had turned away from the screen and towards his door.  
  
"Riku?" An older man's voice called faintly through the door. The boy turned back to the tablet and frowned.  
  
"I'll talk to you later, okay?"  
  
"Yeah of course. Text me later.." After waving to his friend, he ended the call and shut off the screen. Honestly, he hated to end the call there, but his dad called for him and it was just best to go.  
  
Leaving his tablet on the desk, he pushed out of his chair and headed towards the door. 'What could he possibly want now?' Riku thought to himself as he exited his bedroom and headed down the hallway towards the stairs.  
  
As he made it to the stairs, Kadaj poked his head out of his room and saw his youngest brother, giving him a knowingly smirk.  
  
"What do you want Kadaj? I don't have the time." The boy started for the stairs only to have his big brother block the stairway.  
  
"I just thought you would like to hear what I heard the other day." Kadaj crossed his arms over his chest. Out of all his brothers, Kadaj was the one he liked the least. He was always acting like he was better than everyone else and it drove Riku crazy.  
  
"I could hardly care less, ' _Dajie_." The older brother flinched at the childish nickname. "Let me pass, dad called for me."  
Kadaj moved out of the way, but as Riku started to move for the steps, he said something to get him to stop.  
  
"Dad was talking to the head administer of MU a few days ago." Riku turned swiftly and looked at his brother. His mind raced but the only question he wanted answered was 'Why?'.  
  
"And?"  
  
"And, you should be careful. Dad probably has something up his sleeve." Kadaj shrugged and turned back towards his room, leaving Riku to find the answers himself.  
  
He took one last look at his brother before proceeding down the stairs. What did he mean by be careful? Kadaj almost never tried to protect him, especially when it came to their father. There were many times he would throw Riku under the bus even if it was his fault. Riku's stomach twisted into knots as he reached the bottom of the stairs.  
  
Slowly he walked past the foyer and into the sitting room to the right of the stairs. Each step he took made his heart race faster and faster. His heart seemed to stop the moment he passed under the white arch and saw his father standing with his back to him, facing the large bay window. Rain decorated the glass with little splatters. If he wasn't so anxious at the moment, he would have thought the scene was so calming.  
  
"You called for me, dad?" Riku asked, taking a few steps forward towards his father, heart practically in his throat. Kadaj's warning kept echoing in his head, causing his already high anxiety to skyrocket. Sephiroth kept looking out the window as he spoke in a low monotone voice.  
  
"Take a seat, Riku."  
  
Obeying his father, he took a seat on the white leather couch, sitting as far away as he could. Was he scared of his father? No doubt about that. Whenever his father got angry, he would reserve himself into a cold and calculating manner and would attack with the determination to break the inner core of the person he was angry at. It was great for when he had served in the Wutai War, but being a father to someone with some mental issues was Riku's one way ticket to a nervous breakdown.  
  
Sephiroth turned towards his son with a blank expression on his face and took a seat on the other side of the couch, blatantly passing the armchair that he could have sat in. The house was an eerie calm as Riku waited for his father to speak.  
  
"I've pulled you out of Midgar University."  
  
Riku sat in shock the moment he heard those words. Did he even hear him right? Everything that he had worked for, vanished the moment his father opened his mouth. He sacrificed a lot of his free time to enter the university right after high school ended, mainly by making sure his GPA was a 4.0 and had several scholarships lined up. He even had a summer job lined up to pay for things that the scholarships didn't, like books or extra items.  
  
"Why would you do that?!" Anger flared inside of Riku, causing him to stand up and raise his voice. Never in his life had he even so much as gave his father a dirty look without immense fear he would retaliate in some way, but this was the last straw. His hands started to shake so bad he curled them into a ball and held them to his side.  
Sephiroth's eyebrows scrunched together and his aquamarine eyes hardened. The boy knew he screwed up bad, but his anger only clouded his judgement. "Sit down, Riku. I will not ask you again."  
  
"Not until you tell me why you ruined my life!" Riku turned around and took several steps away from his dad, running his hands through his long hair. He hardly got mad but when he did, he would absolutely loose it. His anger was one of the horrible traits he had gotten from his father. He knew better than to lash out at Sephiroth but there was clearly something else going down that only made Riku's nerve spike to fight mode.  
  
"Ruined your life?" Standing up, Sephiroth growled at his son. He crossed the room in three strides and grabbed his wrist, spinning the boy around. Shock crossed Riku's face as he stared at his dad, the anger subsiding rapidly. "You're the one that ruined my life. If it wasn't for your mother, I would have gotten rid of you a lot sooner."  
  
Time froze for Riku in that moment. The words echoed in his head, combining with the pain of his wrist being squeezed started to break him down, though he refused to let tears fall as he started to snap out of his paused state.  
  
"W-What?" The word came out as a croak. His mind was still processing what his father said. The grip on his hand was released, as Sephiroth stepped away from him. Clearly his goal was to hurt Riku beyond compare, and it worked. He stumbled back and hit his back against the pillar for the door.  
  
"I don't need to explain my actions to you. For your mother's sake, I'm sending you to a private college."  
  
Again, what? For his mother's sake? If Sephiroth hated him so much, why was he going out of his way to send him to a private college? Nothing was making sense, and it only made his head hurt with swarming thoughts. It was as if his father shook a nest of wasps and let it loose in his brain.  
  
"Private college?" Riku took a moment to let his heart calm down before speaking. His hand started to shake a bit. Combined with his racing heart, he could only assume he was on the verge of a anxiety attack. He had to leave the room soon or he wouldn't be able to hide his broken side, only which would be ridiculed by his father.  
  
There was a moment of silence between them as Sephiroth watched his son with cat-like eyes. Riku adverted his gaze down, his bangs covering his eyes to hide the tears that started to well up. He had to curl his hands tighter to keep them from shaking further.  
  
"Yes, private college. You leave in the morning." Morning? That wasn't much time to pack his things or say goodbye to his brothers.  
  
"M-May I be excused to pack?" The words were choked and wobbly, a side affect of his throat tightening. His eyes looked up through his screen of silver hair to see his father wave him away as if it didn't matter to him whether or not he was going to pack.  
  
Riku gave his father a curt bow before running back to his room upstairs, where he shut the door and fell against it. He slid down to the floor and covered his mouth to hide his uncontrollable sobbing as much as possible.  
  
How could his father do this to him? Unlike his brothers, he was as much as an exemplary son as he possibly could be. He would never miss curfew, always landed on the honor roll, and was always offered to help the family in every way he could. Riku couldn't possibly think of why his father hated him with such a passion that he would even say something like that. Even going as far as sending him away, only re-sparked the fire in his self-hatred pyre. All of this only made him cry harder, tears staining his shirt.  
  
As his started to calm down, and the anxiety pressure lowered, there was a chocobo wark that interrupted his thoughts. It was Kairi's personal text tone, one she set for him. It always reminded him of the time when he first met her. She had nearly bowled him over on a runaway chocobo, only to later teach him how to ride them.  
  
Riku crawled over to his desk and grabbed the phone, then resumed to sit on the floor with his back against the desk. Whenever he had his panic attacks being down on the floor helped ground him faster. He really didn't know why it helped but he wouldn't complain when he would come out of a panic attack faster.  
  
**[Kairi: r u ok??? pls txt me]**  
  
His fingers stumbled as he proceeded to type his response to her, causing him to rely on auto correct to fix his mistakes.  
  
**[Riku: Are you at the hotel? I need to see you ASAP.]**  
  
Barely half a minute later, her response came in.  
  
**[Kairi: yes im here. do i need 2 get u???]**  
  
**[Riku: No, I can get there by myself. I'll be there soon.]**  
  
**[Kairi: kk. c u soon]**  
  
The phone was set back on the desk as he got up. He needed to get out of the house so bad that he didn't care about escaping through his window. What did it matter anyways? If his dad hated him so bad, then sneaking out wasn't going to be a huge problem.  
  
Grabbing his converse from the shoe rack in his closet, he slipped them on and sloppily tied the laces. As long as his laces wouldn't get caught in the bike chain, he didn't care about how they were tied. Before he left, he made sure to grab his hoodie and phone.  
  
The sun had almost finished setting as Riku pushed open the window and peered out. It was early June, yet it was still warm even as the sun had almost completely hidden itself among the horizon. He had only escaped from his room a few times, each time making his anxiety spike from the overall act of defying his father. This time was different. His heart started to harden from his anxiety attack and listening to his father's abusive poison.  
  
Riku slipped out of the window and hung onto the frame, digging his fingers into the eggshell white painted wood. This side of the house was flat, and the only way he could get down safely was risking a jump to the tree that sat at least five feet away from his outstretched hand. It was quite the jump and the previous times he risked it, he made it and always thanked the Six for not falling. He could only hope that this time would be the same.  
  
As he jumped, there was a moment of serenity as the wind pushed back his hair and he felt as if time stopped in one moment to allow him the brief second of peace. That moment ended when his face came in contact with the bark of the tree. The boy fell several feet, hitting branch after branch until he managed to catch himself, his body dangling in the air.  
  
"F-Fuuck!" Riku cursed as his shaky muscles strained to hold onto the branch. There was a good ten feet to go before his feet would touch the ground. His muscles were screaming at him, combining with the now several scraped and bleeding cuts on his hands and face, he lost his grip again and fell.  
  
There was no way he was going to be thanking the Six now. His ass felt like it was broken, or at least really badly bruised. Luck or no, he was just glad he landed next to the roots and not on top of them.  
  
Slowly, he rose, dusting off the dirt and bark that clung to his clothes. The only real damage was done to his head, where a an open cut to his eyebrow allowed blood to cascade down his face. He touched the wound and realized that he'll need to put something on it or it'll get worse.  
  
Making his way towards the garage, Riku checked over his shoulder out of paranoia. Maybe he wasn't as uncaring as he previously thought he was. Still he ventured forth, opening the back door of the garage and slipped in.  
  
The garage was dark, even with the last rays of the sun coloring the windows in a dark pink and red glow. It made the room have an eerily feeling, with all the dark shadows lurking where the the little bit of light wouldn't reach. Even as he slowly made his way to the front corner, the hairs on his arms and neck stood on edge. There was still a bit of a fear of the dark that rushed his actions towards the med-kit, where he hastily slapped a band aid on his eyebrow; proceeding to grab his bike and leave the house behind, wind stinging his scrapes as he pedaled his way towards the hotel where Kairi was waiting for him.  
  
Her heart jumped to her throat. She was so wrapped up in the game she was playing, that when someone had knocked on the door, it scared her just a bit. Kairi quickly rolled off the bed and opened the door to a sight she wasn't ready to see. He had looked like he was just in a life or death fight with a lion.  
  
"Oh my God, Riku! Are you okay? What happened? Was it your brothers? I'll kill them." Her words started to run together as she rushed to her bag and dug through the contents to find a med kit she always carried. He stepped into the hotel and closed the door behind him, taking a set on the edge of her bed.  
  
"Kai, I'm fine." The redhead found the small white box and pulled it out, a pair of purple lace panties falling out along with it. Riku noticed it, but couldn't say anything as she turned his face to her as she sat on the bed next to him.  
  
"Tell me what happened." He noticed that her voice changed from frantic worried for her friend to calm and authoritative. It made him follow her command, his skin tingling where she touched his jaw.  
  
"I fell right into a tree, trying to jump out of th-OW!" His story was cut off as she ripped off the makeshift band aid. She got up, and left him alone in the room for a brief moment. Riku could hear the water running as he assumed she was going to wash his face for him. His cheeks burned at the thought of her holding his jaw with her soft hands.  
  
"You were saying?" Kairi interrupted his thoughts, sitting back on the bed, once again holding his jaw with one of her hands while the other dabbed at the now dried blood on his face.  
  
"I pissed off a earth nomad, and they exacted their revenge on my face." He joked, pulling his lips into a smile. They were so dry, they cracked easily and started to bleed. Out of habit, he licked the blood away, awarding himself with a bap to the cheek from Kairi.  
  
"Riku, please don't do that. It's gross and I have a towel." Wiping away the blood on his lip, she returned her attention to the cut on his eyebrow. "Good news, your cut doesn't look too bad. It'll hurt for a while, but you'll heal nicely. Maybe even have a scar."  
  
"A scar? On this perfect complexion?! I can not have it!" He retorted sarcastically, watching her expression turn from pure concentration to the smile he always knew she would wear. It made his heart skip a beat, knowing that she was here for him. Not only for his mental needs, but that she was sitting with her leg pressed against his.  
Kairi chuckled as she stopped dabbing at his eyebrow and turned away to grab a bandage and a butterfly band aid.  
  
In that moment, Riku took a shaky breath that he realized he had been holding in. His heart was pounding like crazy, beating loud enough he thought that she had heard it too. 'Was this even the right thing to do? We're going to be in different schools... I don't want to chance it...' He looked down at his lap, where his hands laid in curled balls to stop the shaking. Maybe I'm just not ready for this..  
  
"Riku?" As he turned to look at her, his body seemed to make up his mind for him. Her lavender eyes sparkled as their sight connected and in that instant, the world and pain seemed to melt away. In that moment absolute peace calmed his manic energy, as he found himself leaning forward and pressing his lips against hers.  
  
Time seemed to stop in that moment of pure bliss. All his fantasies of kissing Kairi had finally came to the climax as they kissed. For a moment in time everything was right.  
Kairi pulled away and looked at him, nibbling on her bottom lip. His mind started to race with anxiety and instantly shaming himself for making a bold and stupid move.  
  
"I.... I didn't know you felt that way, Riku." Her voice was in a cracked whisper, the kiss absolutely shaking her to her core. Yet she didn't make a move to leave Riku's side.  
  
He turned his head away, cheeks burning hotly. He messed up and it was probably best for him to go. The constant thoughts of his actions assulted his mind in how badly he just screwed up their friendship due to his feelings for her.  
  
Kairi must not have thought so.  
  
She reached over and touched his chin, turning his head back towards her. Their eyes met again, as her hands moved to caress both of his cheeks. The only sound that could be heard in the room was the street below as the merchants were saying goodbye to the last of the customers before locking up and heading home. None of that mattered. The world didn't matter. Not while Kairi was holding his cheek.  
  
"Kairi, I...." A thumb was placed over his lip to silence him.  
  
"Shh. Don't apologize. You did nothing wrong." She smiled a sweet smiled, pulling his face towards hers again, moving her thumb right as their lips connected again. The world melted away again, leaving them in their own little void of bliss. She seemed to know exactly what made him weak in the knees, as she slipped her fingers into his hair, and dropped a hand to his thigh, using her thumb to make little circles.  
  
Riku closed his eyes, feeling more comfortable with himself as he twisted his body to face her more. His hands grabbed onto her hips, pulling her onto his lap. It broke the kiss for a mere moment, but in their passion, they both continued even as her pushed his back against the bed.  
  
The bandages fell to the floor, being long forgotten by the two teens as they kissed. Kairi had given Riku full control, letting him set the pace, even if it turned from a simple lip to lip to full on tongue play.  
  
The boy pulled away after a little bit, resting his head back and sighing happily, eyes still closed. He felt everything in that moment like his entire body was a giant heart, beating together as one strong unit.  
  
"If I didn't know any better, I would have guessed you've made out with other people before." Kairi giggled, getting off of him and grabbed the band aids off the floor. She didn't forget the original mission, and patiently waited for him to sit up so she could take care of his wound.  
  
"Thank the Six for your dream of being a paramedic." Riku stated, resting against his elbows as she ripped open the paper wrapping then setting the band aid on his face. He watched her, as a smile came onto his face. Even sitting in her pjs of a tank top and Tinkerbell fuzzy sleep pants, she looked so beautiful to him. Maybe they could make it work after all.  
  
"We'll be 'medics together, Riku." She smiled, applying the bandage around his head a few times.  
  
In that moment everything came crashing down again. That was the real reason why he was here. Was to tell her what happened, not make out sessions. Although he would have preferred the latter.  
  
As she sat back on the bed, he sat up, turning his head to the other side, refusing to look at her. She could tell his mood shifted quickly, and she knew that something major had gone down. Kairi put a comforting hand on his shoulder as she returned to sit next to him on the edge of the bed.  
  
"My dad pulled me out of MU."  
  
The redhead sat in shock for a moment, trying to wrap her head around the sudden actions. Truthfully she was still thinking about their kiss, and now that the words escaped his mouth, all hope that they would be a couple flew out the window.  
  
"Tell me everything, Riku."  
  
He turned to look at her with sad eyes and told her everything that happened, from when he left the skype call all the way up to him arriving at her hotel room. Never did he stop looking at her, desperate to savor every second he would have with her. As he finished his story, her hand found his leg, gently rubbing it to keep him calm.  
  
"He can't do that."  
  
Riku looked at her with a questionable expression. "Kai, I'm not 18 yet. He can do whatever he wants as long as it fits along the guidelines of CPS."  
  
At that moment he lost her. She pushed away from him and started pacing the room, curling and uncurling her hands. Kairi was clearly more upset than him in that moment, although he had reserved himself to a state of numbness.  
  
"That abusive fuck! He has no respect for you, or your mother. How could he even say he was sending you away for you mother's sake?! That's like beating your child but telling them that it's for the good of their future. God, I'm about ready to go over there and give him a piece of my mind."  
The silver haired boy sat quietly allowing her to go on her rant. She wasn't really going to go, but it was just better to let her complain. He hated that he had to tell her, but the alternative of not telling her and she finding out another way was worse.  
  
"Kai, I don't like it either. I had my heart set on going to Midgar University and studying to be a paramedic, but now??? I don't even know where I'm going, let alone being able to be a paramedic." His throat tightened, as tears started to well up in his eyes. The realization was starting to set in that all this was happening and he couldn't handle another round of tears. His body was so worn out from his panic attack earlier, combined with his scrapes and the long distance he had to ride to get here, he was hanging on by a thread of strength.  
  
She returned to his side and pulled him to rest against her chest. He heard her heartbeat, a constant steady rhythm beating life through her, it started to lull him towards dreamland. Combined with the calming strokes she did against his back, Riku almost slipped away.  
  
"I should probably take you home."  
  
With Kairi's help, Riku managed to get his back tied to the top of her light blue Volkswagon Bug. It didn't exactly matter to him, but if he intentionally allowed someone to steal his bike, his mother would be ashamed from the lifestream.  
  
The time that he spent with Kairi on the drive back to his father's house was spend in a soothing silence. She kept her hand on his thigh, as if trying to send him good vibes. It was the least she could do since he was basically going through this all alone. Before she left, she kissed him one last time. A sweet and lingering kiss, with promises for the future. He watched as she drove off, the powder blue bug soon turning to a speck of dust along the streets of Midgar's Sector 2.  
  
The boy didn't remember how he had gotten to bed. The gap in his memory completely okay with him as he crawled into bed, kicking off the converse and surrendered himself to a blanket cacoon that swallowed him whole. That night he slept a dreamless sleep, slipping into a void of nothingness while he resigned himself to his inevitable fate.


	2. In my new world, I wont be the same as yesterday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The start of Riku's new life.

**TRIGGER WARNING:** Slight description of wound. Blood mention.

* * *

Riku rolled onto his back, taking the pressure off of his now pounding forehead. The combination of his mind thinking about the previous day's events and the sharp throbs of his wound had kept him from sleeping very much. Despite the lack of sleep, his body was wired.

Early morning light colored the room in warmth as the sun started to rise. It was the morning that he was being shipped off to Shiva knows where, some private college that his dad thought was much more suitable than just allowing him to go to Midgar University. He laid in the sun's ray as he tried to think about reasons why his father could possibly want to send him away. 

Midgar University, while not being a cheap school, had already been paid for through the scholarships Riku had entered and won. He already laid out the groundwork to being self sufficient and acted with adult maturity to pursuing this path. The path of being a paramedic. All his work was thrown out the window by his father, who insisted on the private college.

First, he didn't even tell him what college it was. For all Riku knew, it was a clown college- the option seemed incredibly viable with how his father seemed to treat him. Another possibility that stuck out to him was a military academy. There were times where Sephiroth would comment about his mother putting him into a military boarding school where he spent his teen life.

Second, would he even be able to still pursue his dream? The only reason why he even wanted to be a paramedic, was because of his mother. Before she died, she had insisted on his talent in music and art. It all changed when the medics couldn't save her life while she died from asphyxia while riding towards the hospital. He wanted to save lives and prevent families from loss like he had.

All this thinking made his already throbbing headache worse. Riku inched off the bed, trying hard to not flinch. His hands weren't scraped up too bad, but his fall from the tree had caused angry marks which were sensitive to touch. Quietly, he left his room, zigzagging around on the mahogany flooring to prevent the wood from creaking and possibly waking up his father and brothers.

Even with socked feet, the bathroom tiles were still cold enough to make him shiver. He closed the door and locked it behind him out of habit before starting to remove his clothing. He had gotten as far as removing his hoodie before catching sight of his 'lived in the wild like an animal' aesthetic in the mirror. Riku stopped and moved closer to his reflection, leaning over the sink to get a closer look.

Slowly he started to remove the bandage, revealing the gash in his eyebrow. The wound had started to look dry and irritated. Adding to the scratches on his hands and the blood spattered dry lips he had, the overall look he had was Grade C horror movie makeup. He would have to spray some neoproxin after the shower.

Before Riku completely stripped, he took a second to get the shower water running. A quirk of having an old water heater: iffy water temperatures. Most of the time when Riku had to shower, he either had to get up before everyone else or risk cold water. That was the major downside with living in a house of only boys. No hot water ever. Although the only one to really complain about the cold shower water was Riku anyways. The hot water was the only warmth Riku ever really experienced, especially after his mother died. Somewhere he read that the reason for people taking extremely long hot showers was the water acted like a hug for lonely people. Or something along those lines.

Just like the article, as the hot water warmed his skin, he felt like he was being given a hug. An awkward naked and covered in water hug, yet a hug regardless. As he started to lather his hair in shampoo, Riku let his mind be consumed by the shower sounds, letting it drown out any thoughts that would make his headache worse. 

Wrapping a towel around most of his lanky figure, he stepped out of the shower and sat on the toilet, letting the towel soak up the water off his body. From where the towel fell away from his body, he saw dark purple to black bruising. They covered most of his thighs and in the florescent lighting of the bathroom, it only made the bruises darker than they already were.

Suddenly a few light taps of the bathroom door broke Riku out of his daze, sending his heart into panic mode.

"What?"

"I need to take a leak. Hurry the fuck up man." Yazoo. No matter how much their mother would complain about his language, he never let the fact that he had no filter bother him.

"Gimme a sec, Yaz. I'm naked." He stood up and went to the small linen closet in the corner next to the stackable washer and dryer unit, and grabbed a bathrobe.

"Yeah so? That's never stopped me before. We've seen each other naked before." His voice became unmuffled as Riku opened the door, holding the robe as tight as possible over his small frame. Both brothers matched each other in height and weight, yet Yazoo filled out his body better. Riku felt like his soul was so much more tinier than his body was fit to fill. "Ouch. What happened? Ran right into the bookcase again, lil bro?"

Riku slipped to the side, allowing his brother to pass, ignoring the comment. "Just hurry up. I still need to use the bathroom."

"Yeah whatever." He was then pushed out of the room, door closing and locking in front of him. Quickly, he rushed into his room, ignoring the floor as it creaked under his feet. If he wanted any chance to fix his face before another one of his brothers took over the bathroom again, he would need to grab his clothes and run back.

Yazoo just barely left the bathroom, as Riku appeared again, a bundle of clothes in his arms. "Seriously though, story about the cut?" He asked, blocking the doorway.

"Oh come on, Yaz. I don't have the time for this." He pouted, attempting again to strong arm his way in, but a hand pushing him back stopped him.

"What's the rush? We all know about you sneaking out last night. You're not really subtle while falling out of a tree." Yazoo smirked, watching his brother look away from him in shame. "Oh come on, don't give me the wounded animal look. Dad expected you to run away to your girlfriend."

Riku looked back at Yazoo and watched him move away from the door and walk back towards his room. 'What the hell?' He thought as he returned to the bathroom, locking the door behind him. His family was acting extremely strange and if he continued to think about it, it would only make his head hurt more.

After he had gotten dressed and applied antiseptic cream and a bandage to his eyebrow, he threw the robe into the hamper and left the bathroom.

Normally, Riku reveled in the calmness of the house in early morning slumber, but this morning was different. It was as if all the life had been sucked out of the calming air, giving him a sense of emptiness. Even as he made his way down the stairs, passing all the family photos that decorated the wall, he felt like a stranger.

Riku stopped in front of a photo, midway down the stairs and turned towards it. The photo showed a young boy with light silvery hair, smiling with a two toothed gap in his front teeth, holding out the teeth to the camera as a blue haired fairy crouched next to him. His heart nearly broke, seeing how happy he was back then. Even as a kid he had been oblivious to the pain he would later face.

Curling his fingers into his palm, nails digging into his cuts, the boy turned away from the photo. He continued down the stairs, waiting till he had entered the kitchen to unclench his hands, letting out a long breath as he did. 

The room had a calm air to it, as he let go of his anger and made his way around the island and to the coffee pot. Everyone in his household with exceptions for Loz drank coffee. It was just easier to have coffee going while he was getting breakfast started.

Riku was easily preoccupied with the menial task of making the surplus of french toast, bacon and eggs, allowing his mind to focus on cooking. He had all four burners on the flat top cooking at once, keeping a steady flow of stirring and flipping while the rest of the house woke up.

"Smells good, Riku." Loz commented, opening the fridge door, being careful not to hit his brother. The youngest waited till the door was closed before turning to look at his brother.

"Thanks." He turned back, focusing on the food. Loz cleared his throat as he opened the bottle of water, leaning up against the fridge. Riku looked at his brother, seeing a look that only meant that he wanted to talk. "What?"

"I heard about the uh.. what happened..." Loz looked away and moved to sit at the island. Riku turned back to the food, choosing not to respond at the moment. Instead he flipped the food, letting the sizzling drown out his thoughts. He wasn't mad at Loz. His brother did nothing wrong and he knew that it wasn't fair that he was giving him the cold shoulder. After flipping the food once more, he turned his head towards his brother, looking over his shoulder.

"Can you get the table set?" That brought a smile back onto Loz's face as he got up and started to help set up for breakfast.

As the plates, silverware and glasses were set onto the table, Riku and Loz teamed up to lay out all the food, just as the other two brothers made their way into the kitchen.

"Poison for breakfast, Reek?" Kadaj snorted, pleased at himself for the Game Of Thrones reference as he plopped down into a chair and grabbed a slice of bacon. Riku ignored the comment, sitting in his own chair and taking a sip of the coffee he had made for himself.

"You just ate poison then, Ramsey." Sitting next to his brother, Yazoo nudged at him. Kadaj grabbed at his throat making choking noises before slumping in his chair and pointing at Riku.

"You guys really suck with keeping things accurate." Riku smirked, enjoying his brothers. Times like this made him feel like a part of a family. When even though his brothers could be royal pains in his ass, they still were his brothers. Just the thought of no longer being able to enjoy his brothers' silliness sent a stab of pain into his heart. It almost made him lose his appetite.

"At least I kept it in the same series." Kadaj retorted, about to continue with his sentence before Riku groaned flicking a piece of egg at him.

"Shut up! That was one time! Let it go!" Kadaj shook his head, swiping off the egg on his shoulder. He grabbed a piece of his own egg and threw it at his brother, hearing the footsteps of his father as he walked into the room. He knew that Riku would retaliate and get in trouble by his father. Only today Riku deflected the egg and turned to watch it fall on his father's socked foot.

The room went quiet, as the boys watched their father look down at his sock, then at all his sons. This wasnt the first time that he had walked into the start of a food fight, but this morning felt different. Sephiroth simply bent down, picked up the egg and went to the sink, dropping it down the garbage disposal.

"I could have eaten that." Loz complained, tapping the empty spot on his plate where his eggs had been. With how much energy he went through on a daily basis, Loz could have eaten it and still would have been content.

"Ew. You could have gotten athlete's foot, on your tongue." Yazoo cringed, before returning to spacing out. As much as Riku wanted to correct his oldest brother, it was for the best that he left the subject alone. He wouldn't have given two shits anyways.

"It would be just like Loz to get a foot fungal infection in his mouth." Their father stated in a monotone voice, a hint of a smile lurking on his lips. Everyone in the room started laughing, even Loz. Everything in that moment seemed perfect. One big happy family of boys, laughing at the stupid comments of one of the brothers. Moments like this made Riku believe that there was such a thing as a happy family for him.

That moment died when a knock cut through their laughter. Riku pushed back his chair and headed towards the door as his family returned to their food, a new conversation picking up as soon as his feet moved him past the archway of the kitchen. His heart rate started picking up as his fingers touched the golden colored handle, twisting the door open.

Sunlight blinded him the moment he pulled the door away from the frame, only lasting a brief second before the door revealed a lanky man in a crisp black suit.

"May I help you?"

The man extended his right hand towards the boy, giving a curt nod instead of a smile. "My name is Tseng. You must be Riku."

He nodded at the man, as their hands touched. Something about this Tseng guy gave him a chill that trickled down his back. The whole meet and greet seemed quite odd to him.

"Early as always. Care for some breakfast?" Sephiroth asked, coming up right behind his son. Riku pulled away, stepping to the side. There was no way he wanted to get back on his father's bad side, even though he was being sent away today. He wasn't even ready for it.

Tseng's dark eyes flickered from his coworker to the son, before he gently shook his head, but stepped into the large house anyways. "Thank you, but no."

Aquamarine eyes watched as the stranger closed the door behind him, as if he had been here before. Something about his presence made Riku's heart race.

"Riku." The sharp tone of his father's voice, broke him out of his current dazed state, causing him to look at him with a slightly scared look. "Where are your bags?"

"What bags?" It took him a few seconds to realize what exactly was going on, his brain clicking into place. He couldn't even believe how brain-missing he had been. "Oh, right uhm... I haven't even packed yet."

Sephiroth's lip twitched in displeasement, before he turned away and started back for the kitchen. "Don't make Tseng wait any longer than he already is." With that, he left him and Tseng alone in the foyer, rejoining his other sons.

Another long moment of awkward silence passed before he bowed slightly towards the man who would whisk him away from his family. The least he could do is be polite and not make him wait any longer than he was going to.

"I'll try to pack fast." All Tseng did was nod at him before following his father into the kitchen, leaving him alone.

Several dark thoughts climbed their way out of the walled off corner in his mind as he made his way up the steps, leaving his breakfast to sit cold on the table. Surely his brothers wouldn't put it to waste, or his dad would eat it. Maybe this is good that he was being shipped away. No one seemed to really care about him anyways, always leaving him to stand off to the side watching everyone pass by him.

Whatever schooling his dad was sending him to was probably a blessing in disguise. It would give him a chance to start over, start fresh. Maybe make some friends who he could actually spend time with. It wasn't as if he didn't have friends, but with everyone heading off to different colleges, he got lost in the fray of trying to adult.

Those dark circling thoughts kept swarming his brain as he had gotten into his room and started packing. What if people at his new school didn't like him? He was already a socially stunted, maybe there was just no hope for him to make a new friend anyways.

From his bedside table, a chocobo 'kweh' broke him out of his thoughts. He stood up and made his way around the newly made mess of clothes strewn across the floor, to grab his phone.

[Kairi: hi]

Smiling, Riku quickly typed out a reply before heading back to the spot he had been to continue packing.

[Riku: Good morning, sleepy head. How did you sleep?]

As per normal, Kairi sent back a quick reply. Conversations always went fast with Kairi 'test so fast' Evelon. For a few minutes, he ignored his phone, until another message insisted on his reply.

[Kairi: it was ok. just hella worried about u.]

[Kairi: did u sleep okay? wut did ur dad say?]

His heart skipped a beat, remembering what had happened last night. The thought did send a bolt of pain to his wound though. He'd need to apply some numbing cream to it later on.

[Riku: Dad didn't say anything to me... Well not really anything about last night. He was a little pissy when I had told him I hadn't started packing...]

There wasn't a text from Kairi for several minutes, giving him the chance to continue packing without being interrupted. He knew she was probably showering or grabbing coffee. By the time she had responded back, he was finished folding all his clothes and had grabbed his duffle bag from the closet.

[Kairi: wut a dick!!! u had no time 2 pack!!!]

[Kairi: the least he couldve done is given u time 2 pack...]

The thought of his father giving him a notice even a week before hand wouldn't have made this any easier.

[Riku: It's okay, Kai. I'm almost finished packing anyways. It's not like I was given a list of things I needed for school, so I just grabbed what I thought I needed.]

Setting his phone aside, he let the text come in while he stacked the clothes in the bag. There was still several things on his mental list to grab, but he was had just wanted to  get his clothes packed first.

[Kairi: thats dumb. i wish u were still going 2 mu w me]

Riku's heart pounded thinking about her. There she was, sitting all alone in a hotel room only a few miles away. He was so close to her, why did it seem like she was so far? Quickly he fired off a quick message before getting up and heading to the bathroom.

[Riku: Me too, Kai.]

Once in the bathroom, he quickly grabbed all his bathroom things, shoving them into a bag that he had in his drawer for when he spent the night at Sora's house. Before leaving, he took one last look in the mirror. The bandage and scratches made him look like he had lost a fight with Sher Khan, the tiger from The Jungle Book. Even though he checked it about two hours ago, he still wanted to make sure that it was healing.

Removing the bandage, Riku took a better look at the wound. It didn't look as bad as he thought. It looked like a fresh wound, open and still wet from the anti-septic gel he had applied earlier. With the gauze off, the wound was easily hidden from view with his long bangs. It also made the scratches slightly less noticeable.

Making a decision to keep it off -He had heard from his dad that small wounds heal better when not covered- he grabbed his bag and headed back for his room, where he was greeted by his brother Loz, standing over the duffle bag of clothes. Riku noticed he held one of his hands was closed, hanging loosely at his side.

"What's up, Loz?" He asked, walking towards the bag and dropping his toiletries on top of the pile of clothes. His brother extended his closed hand, waiting patiently for his youngest brother to look at him. Riku looked from the hand to his brother, before hesitantly offering an open hand.

The item was transferred from twin to twin, in a moment of silence, before Loz looked away, awkwardly rubbing his neck. It seemed like his brother wanted to speak but couldn't quite get the words out, giving Riku just enough time to look down at his hand. The item took every word, thought and breath from him.

A silver chained necklace lay in his hand, bits of the chain spilling out of his palm, with the charm sitting in the center, facing him. It had been years since he had last seen this necklace. The last time he remembered seeing it was on his mother's neck while she was lying in the hospital bed, her skin turning whiter than the sheets.

"Where..." Riku's voice came out in a shaky whimper. The charm was a silver outlined wayfinder with each of her family's favorite colours. At the bottom left was Sephiroth's with a steel blue- the same color as his wife's hair, with Yazoo taking the top slot with a grassy green. Kadaj had the bottom right with a dark red, while Loz occupied the left middle piece with a faded lilac. Leaving Riku with the right middle piece.

He remembered when his mother originally had commissioned the piece, she asked her entire family while at dinner one night, while they were all still kids. His brothers and father answered quickly, returning to their meals within the minute. It took Riku a solid week to decide what his color would be, but ultimately he went with the color that stood out to him the most. Aquamarine. The color of his eyes and the oceans of Destiny Islands, where his happiest memories were from.

"Mom wanted you to have it. She gave it to Dad to give to you before she died, but he gave it to Yaz and Kadaj, but I stole it from them. Now you have it." Loz looked out the window, avoiding looking at his brother. His voice was choked, as if holding back tears. Out of the entire family, both him and Loz were the soft hearted kids, constantly being teased for it. Once Loz hit puberty and got into sports, where he became the tank of the family, while Riku grew to be a tall string bean, the burden fell completely on him.

The youngest quintuplet reached out to his brother, resting his free hand lightly on Loz's arm. None of the Jenova kids were good with expressing their feelings, always resorting to painful punches to the shoulder or rough noogies, but in that moment, Loz turned back to Riku with tears in his eyes. Both boys embraced each other, in a hug full of sniffles, muscles and silver hair.

"I don't want you to go." Loz confessed, pulling away and returning back to the stoic facade he normally held, even if his words had suggested otherwise. Riku looked down at his mother’s- no, now it was his- necklace, before pulling apart the magnetic connectors and putting it on. Unlike where the charm rested on his mother at the top of her sternum, the necklace rested right between the ridge of his clavicle. Easily hideable under his clothes, where he slipped it under his shirt.

"I don't want to go either, but I don't get a choice." Riku swallowed thickly, trying his best to hold back tears. This wasn't the time or place. Sure, both of them had cried in front of each other, but he had to be strong for his brother. Be strong for himself.

Loz nodded, the threat of tears looming behind bright aquamarine eyes. He moved away from his brother and to the door, pausing to look back at him with his hand on the handle. "Be safe, Rikki."

Riku watched as his brother left, the image almost breaking his heart. Was this some foreboding sign that he would never see his brother again? There was no logical reason why he shouldn't, they still had their whole adult lives to be close. Out of all his brothers, Riku had the best relationship with Loz and had no qualms with being close later in life, yet the possible thought of not being able to see his brother for Titan knows long…

Another Chocobo 'Kweh' brought him out of his thoughts. He sat back down, grabbing his phone from the top of a shirt pile.

[Kairi: when r u supposed 2 leave 4 ur new skool? maybe we can call b4]

The thought of seeing her one last time before he was shipped away to this mysterious private college made a small smile crawl across his lips. He could probably call while packing, but knowing how much Kairi could talk made him realize that it would be a bad idea.

[Riku: Sorry, Kai. My ride is already here, and I don't want to make him wait any longer than he already is... Sorry.]

Setting his phone aside, he had started put the small piles in the bag and ignored the text that came in. As he had put the pants pile in, he realized his hands were starting to shake.

'No, please not now.' Riku thought, feeling the spike of anxiety, shakiness and overall feeling of being off. He really didn't want to have a panic attack now, of all times. There was only one way to stave off this possible attack, a trick he learned from his mom to handle his anxiety.

Sitting cross legged, he closed his eyes, resting his hands on his knees. Deep breathes now. In for three and hold for four. As he started the breathing exercise, he could hear his mom coaching him. She always had a calming aura around her, and having her necklace only made him feel even more connected to her.  _ You're doing well, Riku. Now, out for seven _ . He had continued the exercise until he had felt his anxiety wane. He opened his eyes and checked to see his hands. No shakes.

With the possible attack deflected, Riku continued packing until he had finished. The duffle back was still a little less than halfway empty. What more was he supposed to pack? He didn't know what school he was going to, let alone knowing what he had to take with him. There wasn't anything else he wanted to take with him anyways.

Oh well.

Grabbing his phone, he checked the last notification from Kairi.

[Kairi: i understand. will u still txt me while @ ur new skool?]

[Riku: Of course. You know that I will always text you when I can.]

Standing up, he put his phone in his front pockets before turning towards his bed. From there he grabbed his charger for his phone, tossing it over to his backpack where it landed on the floor a few feet away. At least it was close. He sighed, taking the next few minutes to gather and roll up the cords for his laptop, tablet and mp3 player, before grabbing the rest of his electronics and bringing them to his backpack. He had just bought the backpack, prepared to use it for all his tech, books and notebooks for classes. At least it still was getting use.

After he packed all his things, Riku slung his backpack across his back and grabbed his duffle bag with one hand. He approached the door and took one more look around, feeling lost and empty. The room he spent most of his life sleeping in, he was leaving for a undetermined amount of time. He looked at the walls, covered in various posters, art prints and decorations. Every video game, band, anime and mementos he had gathered over his life seemed to have lost the same effect it had when he would look over them. Thinking that he wouldn't be able to see this room for some time made a pang hit his chest. He couldn't look at it anymore without wanting to break down.

Riku closed the door behind him as he headed down the hall, feeling chills as he walked through the house. He could still his brothers laughing loudly in the kitchen, arguing over who is going to do the dishes. A scene he desperately wished he could be apart of. 

Going down the stairs, he avoided looking at the pictures. It would make leaving harder than it already was. Quietly he got to the bottom of the stairs and looked at Tseng where he stood next to the door, along with his father. They were both looking back at him. Tseng with his dark bored eyes, and his father with his bright unreadable eyes.

"I'm sorry it took me so long. I had trouble thinking of what I would need to bring." Riku stated as he hitched his backpack back up his shoulder. He made sure not to look at his dad, hoping that he could retaliate at him by acting like he didn't even see him.

"Are you ready to go now?" Tseng asked, nodding at him. He nodded back and went for the door, which Tseng opened up for him, and had started to walk through before he heard his name being called.

"What?" Turning, Riku looked at his father with his good eyebrow raised, waiting for him to respond. Kadaj and Yazoo poked their heads out of the kitchen, hoping to eavesdrop on the situation. Their father took a big step closer to the youngest son.

Putting a hand on his son's shoulder, Sephiroth gave him a knowing smile as he leaned down, his lips close to Riku's ear. "I know about the necklace."

Sephiroth pulled back and gave a light push on his son’s shoulder, before turning and joining his other sons back in the kitchen. Part of him wanted to chase after his dad and throw his bag at him, beating him over and over. That psychopath knew how to dig right into the core of his enemies, and his favourite target was his son.

"Let's go." Riku nodded back at Tseng and left his house. He continued to walk towards the car that was parked on the street. He couldn't bear turning back and looking at the house. The building he made the most memories under. Memories of mass birthday parties with his brothers, sleepovers with Sora, spending time painting his mother while she modeled. Memories that would make him crumble into a ball of crying fits and rage.

Tseng clicked a button on the car fob, opening the trunk for Riku to put his things. He was stunned at how sleek and cat-like the car was. It was the car form of a black panther, in his opinion. Part of him felt awkward dropping his stuff in the back of such a beautiful car.

"What kind of car is this?" Riku asked as he and Tseng got into the front seats, buckling up.

"I didn't think you were interested in cars, Riku." The man turned to him with an inquisitive look. He shrugged, resting against the fine black with red stitched leather seats.

"I'm not, but this car is kinda cool."

Tseng nodded and turned back to the wheel, turning the car on. The car quietly purred to life, before the driver put the car into gear and drove away from the house. Riku didn't think about it then, but his heart hurt not taking one last look.

The drive through Midgar was quiet, other than the sound of the car's engine. Neither of them had wanted to say anything, leaving Riku to sit in the seat, his mind consumed with thoughts and questions. He still didn't know where he was going, and something bugged him about what Tseng had said. 'I didn't think you were interested in cars, Riku.' What did that mean?

"Uhm... Mr. Tseng?" Riku turned to look at the man in the driver's seat, hoping he wasn't distracting from driving. Without even taking his eyes off the road, Tseng answered, in a calm tone.

"It's just Tseng. What can I do for you?"

"Your comment about the car... What did you mean by that?"

Tseng took a few moments to think about his answer before taking a look at the boy. His dark eyes seemed to soften while looking at him.

"Your mother used to talk to me a lot about you." Riku blinked at his answer. His mom knew Tseng? How? She worked as a materia and magic specialist at ShinRa Corps. He remembered hearing his mom talk about how she had taught Sephiroth how to use curative materia and magic, and that’s how his father met his mother but how did Tseng fit within the puzzle?

"How do you know my mom?" A small smile crawled onto Tseng's lips. It was as if he knew exactly what Riku was going to ask.

"Let me ask this question first. Do you know what a Turk is?"

Riku nodded. "An elite bodyguard for the military's president, Rufus ShinRa."

"Correct. I'm the leader of the Turks." Tseng nodded back an affirmation to Riku. "I had worked with your mother, quite extensively I might add."

His mother was coworkers with his driver. What a small world. Or a planned world. Who knew?

"Oh." Falling silent again, Riku turned to the window, watching the city pass. They had gotten on the highway and started passing downtown. The city was colored in grey like the overcast sky, making the already steel structured buildings even more bland. Watching the city pass cleared his head, giving him a few minutes of peace as he had nothing to think about. After they passed downtown, Tseng pulled off onto an exit heading towards the edge of the city.

"Where are we even going?" Riku asked as he pulled himself away from the window, watching through the front window.

"Sephiroth never told you where you were being sent to?" Tseng acted surprised at it, even though Riku wasn't. He was always the last to know anything.

"Nope."

Tseng frowned, his eyebrows knitting together. It took him a minute to respond, his eyes focusing straight onto the highway.

"I've been instructed to take you to ShinRa Corps."

His answer took Riku by surprise.

ShinRa Corps? The same military academy that his father went to? The same academy his mother worked at, and apparently so did Tseng? Nothing was making sense. Riku was a very structured individual with a boring bland record of rowdiness, and his father knew with the way his anxieties were that going into the military would probably end up breaking him.

Was that the point?

Turning back to the window, Riku slumped into his seat. Now he finally knew his father's plan. Send him away to a military school to break him. It made his anger spike. Now he wished he would have thrown his duffle bag at his father and hit him. That scheming psychopath. Sephiroth was no father to him, just a dick who he was unfortunately related to.

A chocobo wark broke him of his thoughts.

[Kairi: im gonna miss u]

She still made him smile. A sad smile, but a smile regardless.

[Riku: I want to fucking kill my dad. He's sending me to a military school, Kairi. SHINRA CORPS! I don't know what I'm going to do anymore.]

Barely a minute later, he got a series of texts.

[Kairi: WUT?!]

[Kairi: WHY THE FUCK?!?! WUT A DICK!!!!]

[Kairi: RUN AWAY AS SOON AS U CAN!!! ILL GET U]

Even angry, she was always looking out for him.

[Riku: You know I want to Kai.]

[Kairi: wuts stopn u?]

Good question. He locked his phone and looked out the window again, trying to think. Why didn't he just run away and live with Kairi? They could make it work right? He could find a job, and eventually go to school when he could. He would be so much happier if he left, but then again, he almost never disobeyed.

[Riku: I am. I can't bring myself to run away. Even when I had the chance last night, I ran right back home.]

Riku always knew he was a bit of a coward, but his text to Kairi only made his inner demons whisper their vile in his mind. You'll never be ready to come out of your father's control. Maybe you should just open the door and jump. You're going to die in the school anyways.

"Riku, we're here."

Looking up from his phone, he finally got to see the place where he was going to spend an undetermined amount of time in. The school was built into the side of a mountain, with a dusty valley at the edge of the city. It was designed with stealth in mind, no one being able to enter without passing over the mountain or passing through a series of gates that opened as soon as Tseng drove the car closer. Clearly whoever was opening the gates for him, knew who was the driver, or they knew the car.

Tseng navigated the car through the gates, up to the back side of the mountain, driving towards a concrete building, barely big enough to fit the car. The Turk parked in front of the building, leaving the car running as he got out. Riku followed suit, getting out. He put his phone into his pocket before closing the door and heading to the trunk to grab his stuff.

"This is where I leave you." Tseng stated, closing the trunk as Riku set the duffle bag on the ground.

"Wait." Riku slipped his arms through the straps of his backpack, halting Tseng's path back to the driver’s seat. "What am I supposed to do?"

Tseng nodded at the building with his head. "Get into the elevator and pull the lever. Tifa will take it from there."

With that, Tseng got into his car, speeding away from the silver haired boy, a cloud of dust picking up behind the car. He watched as the car disappeared, leaving him alone at last.

Riku picked up his bag, slinging the strap across his chest as he began the short walk to the elevator. He was starting to feel his heart race and his body shake, as another possible panic attack started to rise. No, he couldn't let it happen. Not now. Following Tseng's orders, he got inside the elevator and pulled the lever on the wall, before he covered his ears with his hands and closed his eyes. In for three Riku. You can do it. Now hold. One, two, three, four. Out for seven. Keep it up.

The elevator started to move as he released his breath. It made no sound as it lowered him to his fate. He kept his exercise up until the elevator slowed to a stop, removing his hands from his ears. The doors began to open as he lifted his head and saw who Tseng was talking about.

The 'Tifa' that Tseng had mentioned was a relatively tall woman dressed in a form fitting black dress that jiggled her tummy fat as she shifted from foot to foot. Riku tried not to stare, but had a hard time. She was extremely beautiful even though she was on the heavier set side. He swallowed hard and ducked his head as he moved to meet her.

"You must be Riku Jenova. It's very nice to finally meet you." Tifa gave him a sweet smile and held out a hand towards the new student. He nodded and shook her hand, keeping his eyes locked with hers.

"Nice to meet you too, Miss Tifa." Riku mumbled, cursing his anxiety. He cleared his throat, pulling his hand away to rub his neck. She grinned at him again and turned around, a door directly behind her.

"If you would follow me, I'll give you a tour of your new home for the next two years." Without a word he followed, gripping the strap of his duffle bag tightly. Butterflies filled his stomach as he passed through the door into a tunnel, strips of mild light showed them the way, etched into the wall. The light cast shadows of them as they walked, a creepy feeling filling his chest.

"You said, two years?" Riku asked, having a hard time finding his voice. His throat was tight as a sudden rush of anxiety raced through his veins. He didn't like the claustrophobic feeling, and being trapped in a hallway under piles of rock only made his stomach do flops. He wanted to leave badly. To return back to the surface and breath fresh air.

Tifa turned her head, nodding at him. Even with her heels, they were the same height, making it easier on the both of them. "Training last two years, then another five years of mission service before we place you into your permanent jobs."

Keeping pace with her, Riku looked away and at his feet as he processed it. His whole life was already being planned out for him, without a little consent. It made him feel nauseous. There just was something about being a bird with clipped wings that made him sick.

It took him a moment before he looked up. They had arrived to another door. Tifa stepped up to the side of the door where a small grid glowed rested on the wall. She took her left wrist, holding up a thin silver bracelet up to the scanner. A small chirping sounded after the scanner scanned her bracelet, opening the doors.

The world beyond the door was like a scene from the movie Divergent- one of Riku's favourites. Walls made of rock, with hastily made rope bridges stringing across paired with a sudden drop off to the left. People wandered about, climbing walls or running along the cliffs edge. It was strange to see such a beautiful room hidden away in a mountain.

"Please follow me." Tifa started walking forward, beckoning for him to follow. Even with a bunch of people out and about in the cave, no one stepped in their way. This made Riku feel slightly better but not by much. His heart rammed in his chest as he trailed behind the woman, trying to keep his breathing in check.

Tifa led him through the main cavern, keeping a steady pace even walking across rickety bridges. Neither person said a word, causing the bubble in Riku's chest continue to expand. Her words were eating at him. Two years of training, then another five years of missions before he was even able to get placed in a job. Granted he would have been in school for that long for paramedic schooling, but it wasn't a forced position. He wanted to spend seven years in school. It meant he would be well prepared to save lives. Here? He had no idea what he was even training for.

“Wait, what do you mean by mission service?” He asked stepping up next to her as she led him off into a side hallway. Tifa left his question unanswered, continuing down the hallway until they reached the door a short walk away. She turned to him and reached out, resting a gentle hand on the side of his arm. He didn’t dare look at it, instead looking down at her as she looked up. Her heels did nothing to add to her height. It didn’t help that he was freakishly tall.

“You will learn everything you need to know soon. In our line of work, patience yields focus.” Tifa removed her hand and turned to the door, giving the solid wood a few curt rasps before turning back to him. “Mr. Leonhart will get you set up with everything you need.”

She started to head away right as the door had started to open, bringing his attention away from the Dean. The man behind the door was about as tall as he was, with steel blue eyes and wispy chocolate hair. His features were rather plain with the exception of the aged scar and resting bitch face he wore.

Riku bowed slightly, biting his lip a little bit. The man kept staring at him with his bored eyes. What was his problem?

“When you’re done with whatever you’re doing, come inside. We have work to do.” Cold much? He watched as the teacher turned away from him, returning to the simple desk. There was nothing else for Riku to do other than follow him, dragging his duffle bag and backpack into the room. Out of habit he closed the door behind him.

As Riku walked into the room, there was a not a whole lot going on. A bookshelf mainly empty sat behind the small desk. A small plaque and certificate hung on the wall next to him. All in all, this room was close to a broom closet. How could someone willingly choose this as a room? He felt small just by standing in front of the closed door.

“Put your things in the corner. I need a full body scan.” Mr. Leonhart stated in a bored tone, scooping a set of gloves and a sleek pair of glasses off the desk. Quickly following his request, he set his stuff in the corner and stood where the man pointed. 

Leonhart slipped the gloves and glasses on, taking a brief moment before clapping his hands together, and held them up. Riku froze, his anxiety spiking. What was going on? He didn’t understand anything and his mind raced with a thousand possibilities, none of them good.

“Turn for me. Slowly.” He did what he was told, biting his lip. After he had turned in a full circle, the teacher returned to his desk. He sat down in the desk chair, and snapped his fingers, digital holograms appearing before Riku’s eyes. There his holographic self stood, with little stars popping up around his body.

“I assume you don’t know what this is.” Mr. Leonhart looked through the image at Riku as if he had done this before. He flicked his hand to the side, having the holograph spin.

“No, sir.” The teacher brushed away his bangs before tapping on one of the stars that was next to the image’s head.

“This system is called the ShinRa Hologram Internal Technology,” he starts in a monotone, as if bored. “All the staff here use this system to keep track of every SOLDIER’s training.” The star created a little line connecting to a list.  _ Stage One Agoraphobia. Stage Three Panic Disorder _ . Riku read, holding his breath. He remembered his doctor diagnosing him with those exact things. His heart started pounding in his chest. What was up with this system? Did it read his mind?

“So… What does that mean?” He asked, pointing to the words next to his holograph. Of course he knew exactly what they meant, but why they were showing up was what he was aiming for. Did the system know all his faults? Although it didn’t list that he had daddy or self image issues.

“It’s a list of important things that could hinder your training.” Leonhart tapped on the star again, having the list disappear. Knots started forming in Riku’s stomach, just as his throat tightened. Great. Not only was he unfit to be Sephiroth’s son, but his mental illness was a possible hindrance to his new school. Questions started popping up in his mind. What if he was deemed unworthy to even be in this military academy? Would he go back home? No there was no way his father would take him back, but there was no where else for him.

Mr. Leonhart swiped the hologram away, blinking as the see-through image of Riku dissipated into nothing. He took off the glasses and gloves, leaving them on the bare desk before pushing back his chair and standing up.

Quickly he went to grab his stuff and follow Mr. Leonhart out of the office, slugging the bags onto his back. Riku was used to carrying a lot more weight than this, especially when his mother had urged him into joining band. Instrument of choice? Snare drums. “Where are we going now?”

“Orientation.” Riku swallowed thickly, biting his lip as they exited the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys. im sooooo sorry for being soo late on this. i hope you guys enjoy this.
> 
> a kudo and or comment goes straight into the inspiration for this fic and others to come fund.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading this! I hope you enjoy reading this as much as i enjoyed writing it. Every kudo and comment goes straight into inspiration for this fic and more to come.


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